Safety device for horse-blankets



(No Model.)

w. D. ADAMS. SAFETY DEVICE FOR HORSE-BLANKET? No. 523,966. Patented Aug. 7, 1894.

WITNESSES IN VENT 0R ATTORNEY ME News rsrzns 00,. marou'mc WASHINGTON n c UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM D. ADAMs, or BROOKLYN, NEWVYORK.

I SAFETY DEVICE FOR HORSE-BLANKETS.

SPECIFICATIQN forming part of Letters Patent No. 523,966, dated August 7, 1894.

-' Application filed Octoberlli, 1393.

- Serial No. 488.112. (No model- T at whom it may concern: Be it known that I, WILLIAM D. ADAMS, a citizen of the United States, residing in the city of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Safety Devices for Horse-Blankets or Similar Articles, of which the following is a specification.

I-Ieretofore blankets used for covering animals have been unprovided with any special safety devicesto protect the same from being stolen from the animal when unattended. It is a source of constant complaint especially in cities where trucking is much employed and where horses are left more or less unattended in the streets, that the blankets covering them are frequently taken from the animals by unprincipled people and the owners put to much. annoyance and expense by reason of the loss. 1

My invention relates to devices attached to a blanket for horses whereby the same may be secured to various parts of the harness while in use. The. object being to render it difficult to take off the blanket except in the proper way without substantially ruining the same.

To this end my invention consists in attaching to an ordinary horse blanket or similar article a plate or anchoring device to which is connected suitable locking devices which when the blanket is placed upon the animal can be secured to and engage with various parts of the harness aswill be hereinafter more particularly described.

In theaccompanyin g drawings similar letters of reference designate corresponding parts in all figures.

Figure 1 represents a plan view of a horse blanket embodying my improvement. Fig. 2 represents a transverse sectional view of the 1 same as secured to the harness upon a horse collar. Fig. 3 is a plan view upon an enlarged scale of my improvement.

In the drawings A designates an ordinary horse blanket provided near the neck portion with two holes a or,- intended to allow the tops of the hames to pass through. Between these two holes which are about a foot apart I pre- 50 for to secure a plate or anchoring device B,

madle preferably of malleable iron or other suitable material, to the blanket'by means of rivets passing through the holes a c in the plate B- The blanket may be strengthened for this purpose at this point with a strip of leather, due.

0 O designate screw bolts which turn in and out of the plate B at opposite sides. These screw bolts are provided with an eyelet e to which are attached several links of a chain 0 connected with a lock D having a suitable staple 'i.

E E designate eyelets at opposite ends of the plate B in which are secured lengths of flat chain n. These lengths of chain are preferably inserted and concealed between the blanket and its lining, or are lined on the inner side of the blanket and should extend at some length at different or various positions on each side of the blanket, and then may be riveted thereto at the end or each link thereof sewed to the blanket.

In operation when the blanket provided with my improvement is placed upon the animal the ends of the hames, usually provided with small knobs on the top, extend through the'holes'a a and all that is necessary to do is to place the staple i of the look around the ends of the hames below the knobs, and if the lock is a spring lock which I prefer to use, to snap it, when the blanket will be found to be securely fastened to the harness.

It will'be seen that my improved device cannot be cut from the blanket without virtually destroying the same as the lengths of I chain it concealed and extending down either side of the blanket would also have to be cut.

This it will be difficult to do in the hurry of the moment as I prefer to make the various parts of malleable iron. The reason why I provide the screw bolts 0 O" is to obviate the necessity of having manylinks to the chaino to which the lock D is attached and at the same time I make the locking device adjustable to various sizes of harness as by partially unscrewing or screwing the screw bolts 0 C out of or into the plate B I can lengthen or shorten the extension and play of the device to suit different conditions required. Of course it will be obvious that the chains 0 can be secured to the plate itself without the screw bolts 0,0- and also that the attachment of the ICO chains 91. may be omitted, but I prefer them as an additional feature of security as they cost but a trifle more.

It will likewise be obvious that my improvement may be equally well adapted to a blanket and instead of securing the locking device to the ends of the hames, it may be locked to the rings for holding the reins or traces upon the hames, or the rings for the reins upon the saddle or even to the rings upon the brecching of the harness. The only alteration needed being to provide suitable holesin the blanket to pass said rings through and possibly to duplicate the plate to secure the locking device. I have found the hames to be the most convenient part to lock my device to as all hames especially for trucking harness are provided with extended ends with knobs and with which the blanket engages by having holes a a therein.

It will be seen that my improvement will take only a moment to attach or detach and that the blanket cannot be removed or taken ofi unless unlocked and this is rendered difficult without a proper key as I propose to have various styles of keys and looks. I also prefer to plate or galvanize the various parts of my improvement so that the same will stand the exposure of different kinds of weather without becoming deteriorated or rusted.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination with a blanket, of a locking device comprising a plate secured to said blanket chains extending from said plate and adapted to be locked at one end to a portion of the harness, and means for adjusting said chains relatively to said plate substantially as described.

2. The combination with a blanket, of a locking device comprising a plate secured to said blanket chains extending from said plate and adapted to be locked at one end to a portion of the harness, means for adjusting said chains relatively to said plate, and auxiliary chains secured at one end to said plate and at the other end to the blanket substantially as described.

3. The herein described safety device for a horse blanket consisting of a plate B having screw bolts G G to which are attached a chain 0, a lock D provided with a staple i for engaging with a portion of the harness and the auxiliary chains 12 substantially as described.

4:. In a safetydevice for securing blankets upon the harness for a horse, the combination of a metal plate B, screw bolts 0 O, chains 0 attached thereto and connected with a lock D, auxiliary chains 'IL attached to said plate by means of eyelets E E and means for securing said plate to the blanket substantially as described.

WILLIAM D. ADAMS.

Witnesses:

JOHN T. CANAVAN, ARCHIBALD O. SHENSTONE. 

